PTE Exam Pattern 2024: Section-wise PTE Test Format

The pattern of the PTE exam which lasts for two hours is very simple. The PTE exam pattern is designed to assess the English language Speaking & Writing, Reading and Listening skills of the test taker in three parts. Since the PTE Academic exam is an integrated skills test, more than one skill gets tested by the medium of each of these 3 parts. The patterns of Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of the PTE exam are given below:

1. Part 1- Speaking & Writing: This section takes around 54–67 minutes to get completed and contains 7 different question types. This part assesses the English speaking and writing skills of the test taker in an academic environment.   
2. Part 2 - Reading: This section takes around 30 minutes to get completed and assesses the reading and writing skills of the test taker. This section contains 5 different types of questions. 
3. Part 3 - Listening: Taking around 30 minutes for its completion, the listening part of the test assesses the listening, reading and writing skills of the test takers and contains 8 different question types.

No. Candidates should note that the exam has been designed to test the candidates’ English proficiency levels. Hence, a candidate who is well prepared would qualify for the PTE Academic exam with flying colours.

It is possible to prepare for the PTE exam in just one month if you have a well-organised and targeted study schedule. Proficiency in English language skills, including speaking, listening, reading, and writing, is required for the Pearson Test of English (PTE). To determine your strengths and shortcomings, start by evaluating your present proficiency in English. Set up time each day for practice, concentrating on each skill area and use dependable PTE study resources. Get acquainted with the format and time limits of the test by practicing with sample questions, especially in areas that present difficulties. Additionally, to enhance time management and replicate the exam experience, think about utilising practice exams. It is possible to obtain a high PTE score in less than a month with persistent work and focused practice.

There is no set minimum or maximum number of questions in the PTE exam. The total number of questions is within a range and subject to change. However, there are a total of 20 different question types which contribute to a total of 52-64 questions in the exam. 

Both IELTS and PTE are English proficiency tests required to study abroad in countries where the native language is English. However, the comparison between the two will depend entirely on the student’s preferences and purpose of taking the test. Below are a few points that can help you make clear choices.

1. Acceptance: IELTS is more widely accepted worldwide while PTE is less acceptable. However, the latter is getting increasingly accepted by more and more institutions and organisations in the world owing to its faster processing time. Both the exams are accepted for Australian student visas and migration applications. 

2. Exam Pattern: Both the IELTS and PTE exams comprise the Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking sections. However, the duration and the sequence of assessing these 4 core English language skills differ in both exams.

The IELTS exam assesses Listening (30 minutes), Reading (60 minutes) and Writing (60 minutes) skills in a sequence while Speaking (10-14 minutes) is assessed face-to-face by a real examiner. This is done on a different date from the actual IELTS exam, maybe till a week later. You may expect to get your IELTS exam results after 1 or 2 weeks of taking the exam depending on the type of exam you opted for (on-paper or computer-based).

On the contrary, the sequence of assessment of these core skills in the PTE exam is Speaking and Writing (50 - 67 minutes), Reading (30 minutes) and Listening 30-45 minutes. The total duration of the exam is 2 hours and test takers can expect to see their results within 48 hours of taking the exam. 

3. Assessment: The Speaking section in the IELTS exam is assessed separately in real-time by the English experts in a face-to-face round which is often conducted a week after your IELTS exam date. 

The Speaking section in the PTE exam is assessed along with the Writing section which is a more natural way to assess test taker’s skills. The speaking section along with all other sections are completed online, on the computer and are assessed by artificial intelligence. 

4. Release of Results: PTE releases its test results within 48 hours of taking the test. However, the IELTS exam result can take around a week's or 2 weeks' time to get relesaed. IELTS scores are generated by English experts who compare your performance with the global standards while PTE uses an automated scoring system by using AI. 

These factors may help you arrive at your decision of which exam to choose from for your academic endeavours. 

An automated scoring system analyzes your performance in each section and assigns a score from 10-90 for each skill (Speaking, Writing, Reading, Listening). Your overall score reflects your general English proficiency level, calculated based on the average of your individual section scores. The scoring process is unbiased

The test comprises three core sections:

1. Speaking & Writing (54-67 minutes): Assesses your ability to speak fluently and write clearly through various tasks like describing images,  summarizing texts,  and responding to prompts.
2. Reading (30 minutes): Evaluates your reading comprehension and information analysis skills through multiple-choice questions based on academic and factual passages.
3. Listening (25-30 minutes): Tests your ability to understand spoken English through tasks like summarizing lectures,  completing sentence clozes,  and answering multiple-choice questions based on audio recordings.

Candidates are advised to appear for the PTE Academic exam after having prepared well for the exam. Candidates are advised to refer to online/offline study material available on the official PTE website and also go through our preparatory guide.

Both the PTE Academic and IELTS have been designed to understand the English language proficiency of the candidate. They have been designed to test the writing, speaking reading, and listening skills of the test taker. Hence, both the tests are at par with each other and the candidate should opt for the one he is comfortable in. However, there are some points of differences that must be noted when making a decision, these are:

1. The PTE exam (2 hours) is shorter than the IELTS exam (3 hours).
2. All the segments (sections) of a PTE exam are tested within a day, in a single sitting. However, the different sections in an IELTS exam are assessed on different days. 
3. The IELTS exam tests speaking, listening, reading and writing proficiencies in the English language separately, which may not be appropriate for testing the real-life comprehension abilities of the test-taker. On the other side, the PTE exam tests all these skills simultaneously based on the belief that successful communication is developed by combining all these skills together. 
4. Your performance in a PTE exam is judged by AI, which leaves little to no room for human errors and any sort of bias. the scores awarded in this manner are mostly accurate. While, in an IELTS exam, a human examiner is present to test your overall English proficiency. 
5. Results can be expected within two days of taking the PTE exam, while the IELTS exam results are released later. 

Below are some of the best expert advices on how you can start preparing for your PTE exam:

1. Cram Everything about the PTE Exam: If you practice this, more than 30% of your job is done. PTE Academic is a time-based test and a prior understanding of the entire exam pattern, question types and the right approach to answering each of these questions can save you a lot of time for the answering part rather than it getting wasted on reading and understanding instructions for each question type. 
2. Prepare on a Wide Range of Topics: Understanding what is being asked in the question is important and answering it for any given skills is another part. For that reason, you will be required to make your English more versatile by consuming knowledge on each topic from different channels such as newspaper, documentries, podcasts, vlogs, blogs, magazines and dramas - all these formats include a wide range of vocabulary. 
3. Avoid Using Memorised Script or Format for Answering a Question: Create a pattern or structured response for answering a particular type of question but do not learn specific format or script. You can instead use your own words to create a response based on - point (the main idea of the question), illustration and explanation of the same. 
4. Practice and Practice More: Practicing often and practicing different types of questions in the PTE exam can get you an edge.     

One can take the PTE test 12 times within a 12 month window. However, you may be granted permission to take some extra attempts if the reason for your retake aligns with the retake policy of the PTE exam. 

Note: Candidates must not use new IDs to get benefitted with extra number of attempts as this may lead to the delay in results and may put one in breach of exam's malpractice policy.  

Yes, you can appear for Pearson Test of English every month but with some certain conditions. 

1. You can only retake the test after you have received scores from your previous PTE test. 
2. A student can take the PTE test for a maximum of 12 times in a period of 12 months. So, if you have taken the test 12 times within a period of 6 months, you will have to wait for another 6 months for being able to book another test date.   

Apart from this, there is no condition for appearing in PTE exam. Keep in mind, retaking the exam is not a bad thing but preparing well for the exam is an effective approach.

There are no specific eligibility criteria based on nationality, background, or education level. Anyone aiming to demonstrate their English proficiency for studying abroad, immigration, or professional purposes can take the PTE test. However, individual universities or visa applications may have their own score requirements. 

Yes, you can appear for Pearson Test of English every month but with some certain conditions. 

1. You can only retake the test after you have received scores from your previous PTE test. 
2. A student can take the PTE test for a maximum of 12 times in a period of 12 months. So, if you have taken the test 12 times within a period of 6 months, you will have to wait for another 6 months for being able to book another test date.   

Apart from this, there is no condition for appearing in PTE exam. Keep in mind, retaking the exam is not a bad thing but preparing well for the exam is an effective approach.

The PTE test dates are available all year round. However, a student can appear for the PTE exam for a maximum of 12 times within a period of 12 months.  

Candidates can take the PTE Academic exam multiple times in a year. However, candidates must look for the availability of slot on their dates.

Candidates are required to visit the Pearson PTE official website at pearsonpte.com and click on "Book Now" under the PTE Academic section. In the next step, on filtering out their preferred exam centre, candudates willl be presented with the available date and time slots for the exam. To secure a test date and time, candidates just have to click the day and date option best suitable to them and then click on "Book" and make payment.